What if Adam Cianciarulo hadn’t contracted salmonella poisoning in the days leading up to his professional debut at the Hangtown National? No one will ever know. The bug sapped his energy and cannibalized what muscle he had packed on in the months before his AMA National debut. Forget fighting for the lead against Eli Tomac and Ken Roczen; Adam struggled just to keep nutrients in his frail body. History will show that Cianciarulo raced against the world’s best, but few will remember Adam’s moto scores from his first-ever AMA National at Budds Creek. He

Engine: Pro Circuit runs every race engine on a dynamometer
for a performance evaluation before it gets plugged into the
bike. Mitch Payton uses every tactic possible to make the
most potent powerplants, including titanium valves, high-lift
camshafts, high-compression pistons and ported heads. Each
engine has a two-hour lifespan. There was only 40

minutes left on the clock when Pro Circuit gave us the bikethat Adam rode at the Lake Elsinore National finale.

Adam Cianciarulo is short with a small
build. The low, sweeping Renthal handlebars, 5mm-lower subframe, forward seat
hump location and general ergonomics
were fine-tuned to his size. Even so,

MXA’s taller test riders felt confident onthe Pro Circuit KX250F.Suspension: To quote Adam Cianciarulo, “I’m not too pickyabout my suspension, but I do like my forks really stiff.That way, when I’m coming into corners, the bike doesn’tdip down.” Adam’s bike was far from balanced, but thatdidn’t offend our test riders. Of course most of us are 40pounds heavier than young Adam. The shock was soft butpredictable and resistant to bottoming.